Kakashi first undertook a mission in the Snow Country, clashed with the Snow Ninja, and rescued Kazahana Koyuki. The second time, he took Team 7 to help Koyuki reclaim the Snow Country.
Mokgetsu shook his head; according to Kakashi's interactions with the Snow Ninja, by the time Kakashi first visited the Snow Country, he was already the Copy Ninja capable of mimicking Ninjutsu. This meant Obito had already turned dark by then, yet right now, Obito was only nine years old, indicating a clear timeline discrepancy.
"Then the coup must have occurred at least a few years later."
Mokgetsu analyzed the known information and felt the third possibility was the most plausible; the first came next, while the second was entirely impossible.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, how about I ask some other Jonin? After all, you still have duties at the Ninja Academy," Kakashi suggested upon noticing Mokgetsu deep in thought.
"Oh right, it's already September." Obito, reminded by Kakashi, also remembered the start of the Ninja School term.
"Sorry, Teacher Mokgetsu, I forgot about this."
Obito displayed an apologetic smile. He sincerely hadn't thought of that, being solely focused on the mission.
"I can handle things at the Ninja School. You all wait here for a moment while I pack some things." Ultimately, Mokgetsu agreed to Obito's request.
Based on the plot, a coup in the Snow Country wouldn't happen now, but Mokgetsu wouldn't blindly trust the plot, for facts had shown that the storyline was already changing.
The prowess of the Snow Ninjas was decent; if it were an ordinary Jonin combined with Obito and his three companions, they might indeed face an unforeseen mishap there.
"Great!" Obito's face instantly lit up with an excited smile. With Mokgetsu around, he wasn't worried about anything going wrong.
Upon hearing this, Kakashi also relaxed significantly; working with Mokgetsu on missions indeed provided a sense of security.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, you're truly considerate," thought Nohara Rin, feeling Mokgetsu was very kind-hearted.
After sealing some essential items into a scroll, Mokgetsu took Obito and the others back to the Hokage Building.
Worried that someone might snatch up the mission, Obito immediately asked Sawada Kazuya upon reaching the Hokage Building and felt relieved when he learned the mission was still available.
"We'll take this mission," Mokgetsu accepted the escort mission in response to Obito's hopeful gaze.
Sawada Kazuya promptly completed the registration for Mokgetsu and handed over the materials to him. He could tell Obito genuinely wanted to undertake this mission.
"Yay!" Obito cheered immediately. He already envisioned beautiful princesses and powerful foes, with their team defeating adversaries to rescue the princess and ultimately becoming heroes of the country.
Though they hadn't set off yet, Obito was already imagining himself achieving fame and writing his autobiography someday.
Back when he was still at the bottom of his Ninja class, Obito loved reading those ninja novels and yearned for the various experiences of the protagonists. So for Obito, the identity of the princess mattered little; rescuing her was vital, as it would cement him as a hero.
Following the information provided by Sawada Kazuya, Mokgetsu found Asama Sandayu, who had come to Konoha to issue the request.
"I am Habu Mokgetsu, the Konoha Jonin who has accepted the mission to escort the Snow Country princess." Mokgetsu briefly introduced himself.
Asama Sandayu gave Mokgetsu a once-over and nodded, but his eyebrows furrowed upon seeing Obito and the others behind Mokgetsu. "They're not even ten years old, are they? The Snow Country is quite cold."
Although Asama Sandayu believed that the princess wouldn't encounter danger, he felt uneasy about sending three non-native children to the frigid Snow Country.
The environmental disparity between the Snow Country and the Land of Fire was vast. Asama Sandayu felt the Land of Fire's weather seemed like paradise, ideally suited for human habitation.
Before Mokgetsu could explain, an indignant Obito spoke up: "Don't be fooled by our ages. We're elite members of Konoha, having already been promoted to Chunin. The weather won't affect us."
"They're already Chunin?" Asama Sandayu was slightly taken aback. Though he wasn't entirely ignorant about ninjas, he knew a bit about their ranking system.
"While their ages are indeed young, they are all qualified Konoha Ninja," Mokgetsu added.
Understanding protocol, Asama Sandayu, upon confirming there were no issues, asked his subordinates to pack up and prepare for departure.
Since the Snow Country is an island nation, Mokgetsu and the others could only head to the port on the east coast of the Land of Fire to catch a boat.
But Asama Sandayu had arranged all of this long ago, and Mokgetsu and the others only needed to reach the port and board the ship.
Although initially underestimated, Obito soon found through exchanges en route that Asama Sandayu wasn't the type to look down on children; his concerns were purely out of worry, so conversations along the way were quite pleasant.
"Brother Sandayu, is the princess of the Snow Country pretty?" Obito curiously asked as they approached the ship.
He hadn't seen a real princess; his image of princesses all derived from novels.
"Haha, of course, she's beautiful. She's the most adorable princess," Asama Sandayu laughed heartily as he replied.
"Surely not as adorable as Rin," Obito internally countered.
Of course, he only dared to say this in his heart. He wouldn't be so blunt in reality.
"It's truly boundless," Nohara Rin remarked, gazing at the endless sea, hands clasped behind her back as she smiled. It was her first time by the seaside.
Just then, a gentle breeze swept through, lightly lifting her long hair and pink dress hem.
Obito stood on Nohara Rin's left side, captivated by her cute profile, gently fluttering hair and dress hem, as well as the distant ship and boundless blue ocean.
When he snapped back to reality, Obito grabbed his camera and snapped a shot of Nohara Rin, thankful he'd brought it along.
"What is it?" Nohara Rin asked, turning to Obito.
"Nothing, I just feel the seaside looks great and should take more pictures," Obito waved his hand, answering with a slightly flushed face.
Nohara Rin nodded in agreement, "Indeed, it's a rare opportunity. We should take more photos as keepsakes."
After a brief photo session for memories, Mokgetsu and the others boarded the ship to the Snow Country.
Being his first time on a ship at sea, Obito was initially excited but soon settled since there wasn't anything particularly remarkable aboard.
Though it wasn't extraordinary, with Nohara Rin by his side, Obito was content, constantly chatting with her.
Meanwhile, Mokgetsu discussed the mission's specifics with Asama Sandayu.
"In October, our country will host our most significant festival, the Snow God Festival. Your escort mission ends when the festival concludes," Asama Sandayu explained.
The Snow God Festival is a long-standing, crucial ceremony in the Snow Country, where people pray to the Snow God for milder snowfalls and abundant fish harvests.
Familiar with the Snow Country's history, Asama Sandayu knew that centuries ago, even the Daimyo had to personally partake in the worship, but that's no longer customary.
Mokgetsu nodded, understanding the mission's specific content.
Similar to regular escort tasks, only differing in personnel and location.
Mokgetsu was somewhat curious; since the Snow Country had a Ninja Village, why did they need to issue a request so far away to Konoha? Moreover, the Daimyo should have some power by his side.
After thinking it over, Mokgetsu deemed this question insignificant. To the Daimyo, the fee for issuing an A-Class Mission was trivial, even for a small country's Daimyo, so this didn't need much reasoning.
PS: Lately, I've been reviewing "Snow Princess Ninja Scroll" multiple times, researching details, so updates have been a bit less frequent. I'll try to write more in the coming days.
Since the movie is an animation original piece, its setting is somewhat exaggerated. For instance, the Snow Country's technology is nearly on par with Boruto's era. I'll make minor adjustments for better overall harmony.